Virtual Reality Specifications

5.5"
x
7.4"
x
4"

June

12

2017

2.1

862348 000407

Editorial Review

There are two types of virtual reality goggles currently available on the market and it's important not to confuse them. The first kind, represented primarily by the HTC Vive and the Oculus Rift, plug into a computer and act as output devices, providing dual screens right in front of your eyes to produce parallactic 3D. These usually come with some sort of haptic controllers that allow you to manipulate objects within the virtual world and move around.

The second kind of 3D goggles, exemplified by the Ceek Virtual Reality, use your smartphone, not as something to plug the headset into but as the VR screen itself. VR apps, available on the iPhone's App Store and Google Play, produce twin images to give you a parallax view and the VR device itself basically serves as a holder for the phone, with internal lenses helping each of your eyes to focus on one of the pair of images. These VR devices don't offer any haptic ability to reach into the virtual world and only some offer a means of moving around. They're primarily designed to put you into a scene, much like the 360-degree images you sometimes see on Facebook, except that you can look around through the virtual world simply by turning your head and the accelerometer in your smartphone turns the image as it senses the movement.

If venturing into dark, three-dimensional dungeons isn't your thing, the Ceek Virtual Reality and devices like it are a great way to ride a roller coaster while sitting on your living room sofa or attend a concert in Madison Square Garden while strolling around your own garden. Ceek offers VR concerts and other experiences through the Ceek VR app, which you can download to your phone and look at even without goggles, though the concerts seem to be in-app purchases. You can use standalone VR apps as well, many of which are free.